Crash Course Psychology #14: Remembering and Forgetting

What was unique about the Russian journalist Solomon Shereshevsky (known as 'S')?

• He had a nearly limitless memory and could not forget

• He suffered from severe retrograde amnesia

• He could only remember things for 30 seconds

• He was unable to form new long-term memories

Which of the following describes 'encoding failure'?

• Losing a memory due to physical brain trauma

• Information that never actually entered long-term memory

• Memories that are blocked by newer information

• The inability to retrieve a memory that is stored

According to Hermann Ebbinghaus's 'forgetting curve,' how does memory decay typically occur?

• Memory loss happens at a steady, linear rate over time

• Memory improves over the first few days before disappearing

• Memory drops off slowly at first and then accelerates

• There is a sharp drop in retention early on, then it levels off

What is 'proactive interference'?

• When new learning disrupts the recall of old information

• When a person intentionally tries to forget a traumatic event

• When a physical injury prevents the formation of new memories

• When old information disrupts the learning of new information

If you struggle to remember your old phone number because you just got a new one, you are experiencing:

• Retroactive interference

• Proactive interference

• Source amnesia

• Encoding failure

Which psychologist is famous for her work on the 'misinformation effect' and the reliability of eyewitness testimony?

• Sigmund Freud

• Elizabeth Loftus

• Hermann Ebbinghaus

• B.F. Skinner

What occurs during 'source amnesia'?

• Forgetting the actual event itself

• Forgetting a memory due to emotional repression

• Misattributing the origin of an event we have experienced or heard about

• The inability to store new sensory information

Sigmund Freud proposed that we 'repress' painful memories to protect our self-concept. What is the modern psychological view on this?

• It is the most common cause of memory loss

• It only happens with positive memories

• It has been scientifically proven to be 100% accurate

• Most researchers believe it rarely, if ever, occurs

What is a 'flashbulb memory'?

• A clear, vivid memory of an emotionally significant moment

• A memory that disappears as soon as you think about it

• A false memory created by leading questions

• The ability to remember a list of words using mental imagery

Which study technique involves spreading out learning over time to improve long-term retention?

• Cramming

• The spacing effect

• Source attribution

• Retroactive learning